


All My Scars are Open

by sec982



Series: Telling People [3]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: Absent Parents, Alternate Universe - No Lian Yu Island, F/M, Felicity Smoak is a Merlyn, Panic Attacks, Secret Children, Unplanned Pregnancy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-19
Updated: 2021-03-16
Packaged: 2021-03-17 19:20:18
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 16,960
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28854198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sec982/pseuds/sec982
Summary: Life has once again deposited Felicity and Oliver in the police station. After the drama of telling Tommy and the fall out of Moira's discovery and confession, life is not slowing down for the happy couple. While waiting for Oliver to take care of things with Andy and Tommy, Felicity gets a ping from a search she forgot she set up.It seems Moira's past bribes have long-reaching consequences, and Oliver does not take the news well.This work is part of a series and should be read in order.
Relationships: Oliver Queen/Felicity Smoak
Series: Telling People [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1987759
Comments: 247
Kudos: 324





	1. Prologue

Felicity Merlyn prided herself on her instincts. She had felt deeply uncomfortable around the fourth-grade gym teacher before he got arrested for human trafficking. She had never liked the vibe she got from her father’s friends who used to bring him back from his long solo vacations to a place called Nada Parbat, where he used to go after their mom died. It wasn’t until later when she’d done some hacking and researching into the place that she’d found out it was basically a prostitution ring. She’d enjoyed slipping those papers to Quintin Lance. 

Over the years she had launched many searches, getting results pinged to her phone or tablet later on. It’d been how she found out about her birth mother, how she’d found said birth mother’s phone number, how she’d gotten blackmail material against the lacrosse player who stalked her briefly at MIT. Some searches took so long she forgot about them, and some never panned out at all. But she trusted her gut. Even if she was wrong, she was right often enough to make it worth the effort. 

She was sitting on a bench in the police precinct, waiting for her fiance, brother, and friend/bodyguard to finish being questioned by the police and bailing Andy Diggle out of jail when she got a ping. She glanced down, without thinking. She’d forgotten she had any active searches going. Her heart dropped as she remembered setting it up one sleepless night after she got out of the hospital. Her head shot up, eyes wide, and she looked around, left to right. She could hear her fiance yelling at the Captain.

“I already told you. I’m not answering any more questions till my lawyer gets here.”

“Don’t you mean your ex-girlfriend/business partner’s fiance?”

“Still a lawyer,” Felicity muttered to herself, “regardless of who she’s slept with.” She spotted Quintin sitting at his desk, and she made a beeline for him, slipping into the seat reserved for people he’d just arrested or victims he was interviewing.

“What do you want, blondie?” he asked, keeping his eyes on his computer.

“Do you remember that triple homicide you were working, where you needed DNA rushed and you made me use my favor with Marty in Applied Sciences?”

“First of all, you got that favor from Marty in Applied Sciences, because you made his parking ticket disappear, which is illegal, and I could arrest you for. Secondly, if you want a favor just ask. I think you and I have been doing this long enough that we don’t need to keep score.”

Felicity smiled. 

“I need you to run a name through your database and tell me if you have any records of this person having a child.” 

“That kind of thing is sealed.”

“Birth Certificates are public record, just with the child’s name redacted. I don’t want to know the kid’s name. Just if they exist.”

He glanced at her, finally looking away from his computer. 

“What’s this about Merlyn?”

“Just something I’m looking into for Oliver,” she said, trying to sound casual while glancing towards the interrogation rooms. 

“And is he aware you’re looking into this something for him?” 

When she didn’t respond, Quintin had his answer. He sighed.

“What’s the name?”

“Samantha Clayton.”

“Samantha Clayton? Didn’t she go to school with Laurel, Tommy, and Oliver? They were friends. Not close but they had some classes together.”

“If you say so,” she shrugged. “I was in Boston for most of their Starling U careers.”

“You mean Laurel and Tommy’s Starling U careers and your fiance’s expulsion.”

“Would you just run the name?”

“Fine,” he tapped away on his computer and Felicity glanced over her shoulder one more time. Laurel was breezing through the bull pin without looking around, already on her way to save her finance’s and ex-boyfriend’s butts. 

“Samantha Clayton has one child, name and gender redacted, born about seven years ago.”

“Do you have an address?”

“You stalking your lover’s ex?”

“Address Quintin.” 

He scribbled it down on a sticky note and handed it to her. She glanced at it registering the Central City zip code. She returned smoothly to her bench and pulled out her phone, double-checking the address Quintin found against the one her program had located. They matched. 

_ Frack _

“Hey,” Oliver said, making her jump. He tilted his head at her. 

“God Oliver, I thought you were in with the Captain.”

“They’re not arresting us and I thought you’d been here long enough. You okay?”

“Yeah, just…” she cast around looking for the right words. Damn, she’d promised to not keep secrets from him. “I might have done something that’s going to make you growly.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Tuesday! You all wanted to know if Samantha really got that abortion! Doesn't look like it! Drama! And don't worry, we'll get back around to all the Andy drama. Thank you for reading, and I'm glad everyone is still loving this series! So excited to be giving you part three. You're all about to be exposed to my deep love of soap operas. 
> 
> Stay safe and healthy!


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Tuesday my wonderful readers! I'm so happy to be posting this story. I need to make some tweaks to the last one, and it's nice to be going back to when some plot lines started. I'm very happy that everyone was so enthusiastic after I posted the last chapter. 
> 
> Yes, William is alive!! Amazing right? I love a secret kid plotline. I am a sucker for soap opera/telenovela drama. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading! I hope you enjoy and are staying safe and healthy!

“Do you want to go over the timeline again?” Felicity asked, rubbing his back as he sat in bed, feet planted firmly on the ground, face buried in his hands, elbows on his knees. “I find focusing on facts in situations like this helps. Not that I’ve ever been in a situation like this, where I found out I had a secret child. I mean, now having been pregnant, I definitely know it’d be impossible for me to have a kid I wasn’t aware of. Not that I’d do that to any of the guys I was with in college. It wasn’t actually that many guys, just Cooper, who I told you about, which reminds me I should see if he’s in a relationship. I like to do this thing where if he’s seeing someone I hack into his search history and forward it to her. She should know what she’s getting herself into. Going in with eyes wide open is the best way to approach-”

“Felicity,” he whispered voice raw from all the growling and yelling.

“Sorry.” 

“You couldn’t get anything on the kid?”

“No, the files were all redacted because he or she is still a minor, and there was no way for me to hack into something like that without getting caught.” 

“Just the birthday?”

“Just the birthday and the fact that he/she was born in Central City Hospital.”

Silence.

“Does the birthday match with the timeline?” she asked.

“Yes,” he said, “Perfectly.” 

She nodded, rubbing her fingers into the knots forming in his shoulders. 

“What do you want to do?”

“Punch something till my knuckles are bloody.”

“I meant about-”

“I know,” he said, cutting her off. He got up and bent over kissing her lips. “You should rest. Growing a human requires sleep, I hear.”

“I’d sleep better if you stayed.”

“I’ll be just down the hall. I put a training dummy in the spare bedroom.”

“The one we said would be my office?”

“Go to sleep.” He turned on his heel and was out of the room before she could protest. He could never fault her for telling him. He probably would have kept it to himself, if he’d been in her position. Lying still came easier to him than telling the truth, something he’d been working on. It was what had landed him in this situation.

He didn’t stop to wrap his knuckles, but started swinging, almost blinded by rage. He had to remind himself it wasn’t her fault. It was his, or more accurately it was Ollie’s fault. All Oliver had done, had been to tell Felicity what happened, what his mother had told him about Samantha Clayton. He hadn’t known she’d look into it. It hadn’t even occurred to him that it might be necessary. But Felicity had trust issues. She’d earned them, he supposed, but still. He hated that being right about this would probably make her more paranoid, on top of everything else.

He fell into a rhythm, hit, punch, kick, push, duck for show, repeat. When he got into this state the thoughts and the world tended to drift away. He wasn’t a broken traumatized brain living a life he didn’t deserve. He was just a body, sharp and hard, in control. It brought him more peace than the numerous trips to the trauma counselor his mother had forced on him. Then he felt the skin on his knuckles split. He hissed at the pain, jolting him back to reality as he half stumbled into the training dummy, holding it for support.

He was someone’s father. He knew logically that, technically, nothing had changed. He already knew he was someone’s father yesterday. It was why they’d bought this apartment, why he’d been working so hard at the club, why he’d been learning to cook so Felicity would eat something that wasn’t deep-fried. He wanted what was best for their baby, but that was different. That was a baby that wasn’t even born yet. They were still getting ready. He still had time with that. This was a seven-year-old, who’d grown up without him. 

He wanted to blame his mother, for bribing Samantha and forcing her away. He wanted to blame Felicity for not believing the story his mother had told him. He wanted to blame his father for never telling him the truth, but in reality, it was no one’s fault but his own. He’d gotten her pregnant. He’d wanted things to go back to the way they were before and he’d been willing to blindly believe anything. 

He’d failed.

>>>\------->

Felicity woke up the next morning, feeling sore. She stretched, eyes still lazily closed, her back cracked. She muttered under her breath, wondering why it was throbbing today. Then she registered how she was in the middle of the bed completely alone. Oliver usually spooned her, and his body heat kept her muscles relaxed. She pulled her face out of her pillows. His side was empty, except for her own limbs which had taken over in the night. With a sigh, she pulled herself out of bed. At twelve weeks pregnant she didn’t waddle or struggle to move, but she could feel the bump, making the fact that she was pregnant impossible to ignore.

She found her fiance in the small third bedroom. He was lying on the floor, staring wide-eyed up at the ceiling, surrounded by boxes and a training dummy, smeared with blood.

“Oh Oliver,” she whispered, for once ignoring his shirtless state. She wondered for half a second if they’d unpacked the first aid kit yet. Probably not, so she settled for simply lowering to herself next to him. Fingers smoothing over his sweaty chest, till she cupped his cheeks. “Did you sleep at all?”

“I’m fine,” he grumbled, but she didn’t buy it. One of his hands found her bump. It was large enough to cover the whole expanse of it and he did so, without thinking, feeling protective and vulnerable. 

“That’s not true,” she whispered. “Or I wouldn’t have woken up alone.” She examined his free hand as she spoke, noting the blood and bruising. He hadn’t used the wrap. Was it lost in a box somewhere too, or had he just not bothered? 

“Come on,” she said, pulling at his arms, trying to get him up. He slowly sat up and got to his feet on his own, thank goodness. He was too big for her to drag. “I don’t know where the first aid kit is, but we should at least wash these,” she continued, still holding his hand. 

He let her pull him into the master bath. She began opening boxes, looking for something and he stood in front of the sink, staring blankly at it. She turned the water on for him and pushed the soap closer. It stung to wash the cuts and he winced when his fingers trailed over tender bruises. It brought his tired brain back to the present slightly.

“You should eat something,” he said. 

“Got it!” She said in victory, pulling a red kit out from one of the boxes stacked up by the shower. She came over to him and unzipped it. 

“I could make eggs.”

“You can not because you’re going to let me rub antiseptic on those cuts, you’re going to wrap them, and then I’m taking you to bed mister. I mean,” she blushed. “Putting you to bed. You have to sleep. Not that I don’t love having sex with you. I really really do. It’s how we made the lime but-”

“Lime?”

“According to the internet, the baby is the size of a lime now.” 

His fingers found her bump again. He closed his eyes, trying to imagine their child, being so small and sheltered inside of her. They were safe and whole and standing in front of him, for him to touch and see and squeeze. But what about his other child? His heart dropped and he slumped forward. Felicity had her arms wrapped around him instantly.

“You’re okay,” she whispered, fingers, stroking his hair. “Everything is going to be okay.” He shook his head into her shoulder, but that only made her double down.

“It is. We’ll find them. We have their address. We’ll get a DNA test, and we’ll confirm it. If it’s not a match we’ll all move on with our lives.”

“If it’s a match?” he asked. He knew it was going to be a match. He’d felt it in his bones when Felicity had told him what she’d found.

“Then we’ll deal with it.”

He didn’t deserve her. He couldn’t deserve her. He couldn’t even look at her. She pulled back cupping his cheeks and forcing him to make eye contact with her.

“I don’t care that you have a child. I care that you’re hurt. I care that your mother bribed this woman and that she left without telling you. But the child part doesn't matter to me. It’s your family; therefore it’s our family.” She brought his hands back to her bump. 

He had a lump in his throat. He couldn’t speak. How had he gotten her to agree to date him? She’d known him before the kidnapping before he’d changed. Why had she agreed to be with him? How had he gotten this miracle of light and happiness before him to agree to marry him? How was he lucky enough to have a child with her, especially when he’d failed his first one so miserably?

“I can hear your brain being growly,” she scolded, ripping open an antiseptic wipe from the first aid kit. He hissed as she cleaned one hand, then the other. He always had one palm pressed against her bump, grounding him, keeping him in reality with her. 

“Don’t slip into the darkness,” she whispered, as she wrapped a bandage around his knuckles. “Also don’t spar with John for a while. I think only target practice till this heals.” He didn’t object to either of her requests, and he let her lead him back into the bedroom. He did pull her in, next to him though, before she could object. She pulled the covers over them and he curved around her back, a hand draping over her stomach. They’d slept this way since they’d first started sharing a bed, and he loved it more now than he did back then. He liked being able to hold his entire family in his arms. Although, now, he supposed this wasn’t his entire family.

“What do you want to do?” she whispered, her hand covering his.

“Do you remember, before you passed out at the library with Iris? You said you wanted to pretend for one more day that it was food poisoning.”

“Yes,” she whispered. “I remember that day turning into two, and it probably would have been another week, if it wasn’t for that ER doctor.”

“Yeah. I want to pretend for one more day that it’s nothing. I just want to lay here in bed with you. I’ll make a decision tomorrow.”

“Okay,” she whispered. He could hear the sleep drifting back into her voice. “But only because I don’t sleep as well if you aren’t spooning me. You’re the best heating pad a girl’s back could ask for.” 

He smiled, despite himself, pressing a kiss into the back of her neck. 


	3. Chapter Two

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Tuesday! I love how excited everyone is about William. I am also excited about William. For some reason, I can't resist William and fanfiction. I love the secret kid drama. I wish there were more Oliver and William drama in canon. I'm pissed child him disappeared in season 7, so I will probably never be satisfied. I hope you all love the drama as much as I do.
> 
> Anyway, happy reading! Please stay safe and healthy!

Tommy leaned against the recently built bar, looking over the search warrant. Oliver stood in the center of the room, watching the police swarming through the place, searching for drugs. Construction had been halted, and they were looking everywhere. One officer even cut into the pad on the stools that had just arrived. Oliver would normally wince at the thought of having to order more, adding another delay to his timeline. But he didn’t react. He wasn’t reacting to any of this anymore. 

“You okay man? You seem stressed.”

“Fine,” he lied. 

“No problems with Lis?”

“She’s fine. She had class this morning or else she’d be here.”

“Normally you’d be screaming about damage and calling an army of lawyers.”

Oliver shrugged. He felt too guilty about this situation and everything going on with Samantha to care at this point. Everything he’d tried to build was falling apart. He didn’t know why he bothered. He’d probably have more luck putting on a mask and running around fighting crime. Pushing his body past the breaking point had been the only thing he’d really done well his whole life. That plus getting Felicity to agree to marry him, but part of him still considered that a fluke.

“Good news, Captain,” came Lance’s voice from the door to their office. The captain left a conversation he was having with someone in forensics. Lance came down the stairs, box in hand, and walked over to where Tommy stood at the bar. The police captain and Oliver made their way to them, as Lance dumped the contents of the box out. Oliver had expected it to be full of drugs Andy planted, knowing his luck, but was surprised to see it contained all the cell service extender equipment. “They weren’t involved, just like I said,” Lance sounded victorious.

“You can tell we weren’t involved because Oliver spent $2,000 on cell service extenders that he failed to install properly?” Tommy asked.

“Andrew Diggle was using cell scrambling tech in his van,” Lance explained. “It makes it harder for the police to surveil you, and he was using his landline to take calls from his customers. None of this would have worked while he was employing that tech, which you would have known if you were involved.”

“That explains it!” Tommy said, snapping his fingers and looking at Oliver. “Remember the day I brought you here to show you around?”

“You mean the day I had to arrest you for beating the crap out of him?” Lance asked.

Tommy ignored him and continued talking to Oliver. “Lis called me right before you said that thing about her being an easy lay. I had service that day! It was before we hired him.”

“I never said the thing about her being an easy lay,” Oliver snapped.

“Not this again,” Lance moaned.

“They could have planted those as a cover,” the Captain said, returning them to the subject at hand and looking unconvinced.

“I kept the receipts,” Oliver said. “I assume most people don’t spend a couple of grand on such a flimsy cover.”

“Ollie Queen keeps receipts now?” Lance asked, tone mocking. Though Tommy might be getting on well with his future father in law, Lance would probably always hate Oliver for cheating on Laurel. He didn’t care that Laurel had forgiven him. 

“Oliver Queen is a businessman who likes tax deductions,” he snapped. Tommy grinned. 

“Does that mean we’ll have cell service in the bar again?” he asked, pulling out his phone. His smile widened, seeing he had full bars and was receiving a text from Laurel, reminding him to not say anything stupid that would get him arrested. 

“Great,” Oliver said, looking at his own phone. He had three missed calls, one from Felicity and two from his mother. “So I wasted that money and hours of my time trying to set those things up.” 

“Well,” Lance said, smirking at Oliver’s annoyance. “At least you have evidence proving you weren’t involved in the multiple felonies taking place here. Plus your fiance will find some use for them if I know that girl.” 

“How does Lance know Lis so well?” Tommy asked as the Captain and detective returned to the search. 

“The whole world knows Felicity loves tech,” Oliver lied. He hated Felicity’s hacking habit, convinced it would land her in trouble one day, and he wasn’t going to be the one to clue Tommy in on his sister’s illegal hobbies. Even if they would be a united front in making her stop. He couldn’t handle both Tommy’s rage and Felicity’s loud voice. No, if the Merlyn siblings had to be upset, it needed to be one at a time. 

“You still seem tense,” Tommy observed. “You know I was mostly joking about you saying Lis was an easy lay. Honestly, I don’t remember what you said. I just saw red.”

“I have a kid,” Oliver said in a whisper. Tommy blinked. 

“Tell me you’re talking about Lis being pregnant.”

Oliver shook his head and launched into the whole story. Tommy paled with every sentence. 

“Does Lis know?”

“She’s the one who tracked Samantha down.”

“How?”

“Google,” Oliver lied, and Tommy believed him, always thinking his sister had magic powers when it came to computers. Technically, he was not wrong. 

“Your mother gave her two million dollars to have an abortion, and Samantha lied about having it.”

“I can’t say I blame her,” Oliver muttered.

“No me neither, it’s just damn. How’s your mom been with Lis being pregnant?”

When Oliver didn’t answer, Tommy’s eyes widened.

“That bad?” he asked.

“We’re not speaking.” 

“Did she do something to her? Something like what she did to Samantha.”

“Multiplied by five, yes.”

“She offered Lis 10 million dollars!” Tommy said, voice rising. A few police officers turned to stare at them. Oliver grimaced. 

“She said no,” he muttered. 

“Obviously, Lis doesn’t care about money. She’s going to form her own company and be a big CEO and probably wind up richer than either of our parents.” 

“That or world domination.” 

Tommy grinned. It felt good to talk like this. It wasn’t the easy joking conversations they’d had before Oliver started dating Felicity. Ollie still seemed guarded, unsure how Tommy would react now that he wasn’t just his best friend, and the shit in his life affected Felicity. Oliver had noticed most of Tommy’s questions so far were about his sister. But the trust was coming back. They were being careful not to ruin it.

“Are you doing okay?”

“No. How does one do okay with this?”

“I suppose not doing okay is probably healthier.” He paused for a moment. “What are you going to do?”

“Felicity wants to take a trip to Central City to visit Thea and track down Samantha.”

Thea was attending Central City College. After she’d crashed her car while high as a kite her senior year of high school, their parents had sent her to a rehab facility there, and she’d never come back, declaring Central City to be a happy place. Oliver privately thought she meant a happy place hundreds of miles away from family. 

“Is that what you want to do?” Tommy asked.

“Visiting Thea sounds good. We need to tell her anyway.”

“I meant tracking down Samantha. You don’t have to Ollie. She never told you, so it’s not your fault that you aren’t part of the kid’s life.”

Oliver had thought of that. He’d thought that he could just keep going, pretending Felicity hadn’t found what she found, but something stopped him. Not finding Samantha, taking the out that she clearly didn’t want him, was something Ollie Queen would have done, not Oliver, but it went beyond that. He’d noticed every time the thought of doing nothing crossed his mind, he withdrew. Not just emotionally, but physically. Thinking it made him feel dark and depressed and he couldn’t touch Felicity for hours after. It felt like he’d contaminate her and the life she was creating. He didn’t want to imagine what actually doing nothing would do to his body and mind. 

“I don’t think doing nothing is something I can live with,” Oliver confessed. 

Tommy stared at him for a long moment.

“You’re a good man, Oliver Queen.” 


	4. Chapter Three

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An early post! Oh my goodness! 
> 
> So I normally post something on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays, but since I finished Press Conference I have nothing for my Friday slot. I have another fic in the works, but it's not ready yet. Before you get too excited, it's not in the Arrow Fandom. I still plan on writing Arrow, but what can I say. Bridgerton spoke to me. I am not immune to string quartets playing Ariana Grande. 
> 
> But while I get ready to publish that monster, I thought I would update one of my Arrow fics early. I did Safe last week, so this Friday my Telling People followers get an extra treat. 
> 
> I'm excited about this chapter because I feel like the second installment in this series had a bit of a Tommy void, that I'm looking to fill. Hope you all enjoy! Happy reading and please stay safe and healthy!

“I don’t know about this Tommy,” Felicity said. She was right on his heels, as he walked down to the car, suitcase in hand. “Things haven’t exactly been smooth sailing for you two, and I get the sense this is going to be emotional.”

“That’s why I have to come. I’m his best friend. I’m there for moral support.” He heaved the suitcase into the trunk of the Bently. “Besides construction at the club is shut down till they finish processing the evidence. We can’t even interview a new crew yet. There’s no reason for me to be in Starling City right now.”

“What about helping plan your wedding? Laurel can’t be happy with you bailing when it’s three weeks away.”

“I think she was actually happy to have me out of the way. I get the sense that she’s going to undo some of my decor decisions while I’m gone.”

“Tommy!” Felicity said, stamping her foot. “I don’t think this a good idea.”

“It's going to be fine. Agreeing to go is a big deal for him, and I’m his best friend. I should be there.”

“You think I don’t know it’s a big deal? Have you been waking up next to him all tense and brooding? Was it you who was gently prodding him for a week to book the train tickets? No that was me,” she hissed, jabbing her thumb into her own chest. “And I don’t want anything screwing this up.”

“Lis, we’re tracking down a random girl he cheated on Laurel with in college, to ask if she took a two million dollar bribe from his mother and secretly had his love child.” Tommy closed the trunk with a snap. “It’s already screwed up.” 

“Exactly. I don’t want him more on edge than necessary.”

“Why would I put him on edge?”

“Because you don’t exactly have that kind of relationship right now.”

“Excuse me.”

She opened her mouth to respond but he cut across her. 

“I’m his best friend. He’s been like a brother to me since pre-school. I’ve known him longer than you’ve been alive, and suddenly you get to dictate shit because you guys have been sleeping together for a few months.”

“No, I get to dictate shit because when you found out we were  _ engaged and pregnant _ ,” she emphasized the words, annoyed at how he was trivializing their relationship. “You said some nasty things and it’s not like you can snap your fingers and go back to normal. It’s a new dynamic, and that’s not the kind of juju we need on this trip which, as you’ve pointed out, is already pretty screwed up.” Her ponytail bounced in time with her words and her volume was inching up. They were approaching loud voice territory. 

“What are you guys talking about?” Oliver asked. He and John and just come out of the lobby, the last few duffles in their hands. Oliver was frowning at the Merlyn siblings. 

“Felicity thinks I shouldn’t come because it’s too close to the wedding, even though Laurel says it’s fine,” Tommy said in a rush. He ignored the look his sister shot him. 

“Okay,” Oliver said slowly. Felicity could tell he didn’t believe them, but he let Tommy take the bags and slid into the car with Dig.

“I’m coming, Lis,” Tommy said, opening the trunk again and using the noise to cover the end of the argument. “End of story.” 

She let out a huff, but followed Oliver into the car, rubbing at a tension headache that was already building. 

Truth be told, when they deboarded the train a few hours later and found Thea waiting on the platform, Felicity had to admit there was a benefit to having Tommy there. It explained her presence on this trip and allowed them the chance to ease Thea into their news rather than having to spring it on her. Felicity and Oliver separated automatically. She slipped her ring into her pocket, as Thea embraced Tommy. 

“Felicity Merlyn!” Thea said with a squeal. Extending her arms and beckoning Felicity forward into a bone-crushing hug. The blond held her breath, hoping Thea didn’t notice the baby bump. “Ollie didn’t tell me you were coming!” she said, shooting her brother a chastising look.

“Last minute thing. I needed a break from grad school, and our wonderful brothers let me tag along,” she lied. They’d planned to tell Thea over dinner later that night. 

“This is perfect. I could use a break from regular college too. How about a girls' night tonight? I know a great manicure place and wine bar, all right next door to each other. We can get our nails done and then show them off as we down some glasses of red.”

All things pregnant women could not do. Felicity’s eyes widened, shooting Oliver a quick glance. 

“Maybe another time Thea,” he said, pulling her off Felicity smoothly. “I made reservations for seven at that french place you love.”

“Oh,” Thea said, “Fancy. What’s the occasion?”

“Just wanted to treat you to a nice night while I’m in town.” He was trying to sound calm as he picked up the bags, handing two to Tommy and taking the other two himself. Felicity winced when he left her bagless, wishing she hadn’t packed her pink sparkly duffle from summer camp, the one Thea would know was hers. It looked odd, slung over Oliver’s shoulder. 

Thea frowned. 

“I can carry that Oliver,” Felicity said, trying to sound casual. His eyes darted to her abdomen and opened his mouth automatically to argue. She cleared her throat pointedly and glanced at Thea. 

“Right,” he said, “Chivalry is dead after all I suppose.” He reluctantly handed her the pink duffle. 

“Since when have you been chivalrous?” Thea said, raising an eyebrow, trying to process the odd exchange. 

“Thea, did you decide on a major yet?” Tommy asked, swooping in and throwing an arm around the brunette as they walked out towards her town car. Oliver took the bag back from Felicity before she could protest. Luckily, Thea was too far ahead to notice. 

>>>\------->

Oliver had only gotten them two rooms, and Felicity could hear Tommy grumbling and gagging as they checked in. Thank google, Thea had needed to run off to class, promising she’d see them later at dinner. She wasn’t sure how else they’d explain this odd new arrangement or Tommy’s behavior. 

“You really need to get over this,” she muttered as they got into the elevator. 

“Never,” Tommy said. He shot Oliver a look, and the man withdrew his hand from the small of Felicity’s back. She in turn shot Tommy a look before moving Oliver’s hand back. 

“It’s one thing to know you’re together,” he complained, wishing they hadn’t gotten rooms on such high floors. “And to see you touch on occasion. That I can keep my cool about. It’s another to know you’re staying in a hotel room together.”

“Oh you so do not keep your cool about the touching,” Felicity said, failing to suppress a laugh. “You growl anytime you see it.”

“Do not.”

“You kinda do man,” Oliver said. He was thankful Felicity had brought it up. 

“Plus, news flash Tommy. We bought real estate together and picked out a new mattress and everything. We don’t need to get a hotel room to have sex.”

The elevator doors opened and Tommy practically crashed through them. “Oh thank god! My floor!” he said as the doors shut behind him. Oliver and Felicity still had two more to go.

“Do you have to antagonize him?” Oliver muttered, pulling her in closer now Tommy was gone. 

“Yes. He shouldn’t even be here.” The doors opened and she walked out into the hall. Their room was sequestered in the corner, allowing them a full view of the city and privacy. She opened the hotel room door with practiced ease. 

“He was actually pretty supportive when I told him,” Oliver said. His heart was sinking at her words.

“Yes, but you can’t be yourself around him right now. The two of you aren’t joking around, being your frat boy selves.”

“Probably because we aren’t frat boys anymore.”

“Exactly,” she said. “You’re both growing and getting used to this new kind of relationship where you aren’t just best friends but also future brother-in-laws. If you’d found out about Samantha last year, before we got together, he’d have had a completely different reaction, because back then he was just your best friend. Now, he has to consider me and my feelings too.”

He couldn’t argue with her. He’d had the same thought. 

“I don’t want that to be something you have to deal with, on top of everything else going on this weekend, what with telling Thea and talking to Samantha. But I think he’s in denial, expecting everything to go back to the way it was before.”

“I hear you,” Oliver said, trying to keep his voice steady. “But he’s already here, so why don’t we just roll with it.” He checked his watch, changing the subject. “You should get some rest. It’s early and we still have a few hours before Samantha gets off work.”

“Fine,” Felicity said. She wasn’t sure what she hated more, the fact that she needed the nap or the fact that he knew she needed the nap. She kicked off her shoes and stretched out on the bed. “I just don’t understand how he even got the idea in his head to come.” 

She pushed her face into the pillow and didn’t see Oliver grimace. He was probably going to have to tell her he’d begged Tommy to come, not for him, but for her.


	5. Chapter Four

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh, this chapter! I am very excited to be posting it, though I suspect you all will not be happy at the end, so I'll say my piece now. 
> 
> This week has been hectic, and I have not been as productive. I need to keep editing the last story in this series, but I've hit a bit of a block with it. Hopefully, I'll be able to work through it. But don't worry. I am nowhere close to running out of material.
> 
> Happy reading, and please stay safe and healthy!

Felicity wanted to come up to the door with him. They’d argued about it the whole drive over in the rental car, but Oliver didn’t want Samantha to feel like they were ganging up on her. He also knew this might be triggering for Felicity, even if she hadn’t processed that herself. Though, he did hate the idea of leaving his pregnant fiance alone in the car indefinitely. He was regretting bringing her to this first meeting. 

However, the point turned out to be moot when they drove up, as Samantha was getting the mail from the box at the end of the drive. They both saw her eyes widen as she took Oliver in and glanced at his companion.

“Well now it’d be weird if you didn’t get out,” he muttered.

“Good, I have to pee,” she answered, and he chuckled despite himself. 

“Hey I have a lime sitting on my bladder,” she said, defensively.

“You’re 13 weeks now, so it’s actually a lemon.”

“Which is worse.”

He pulled the car smoothly up to the curb and cut the engine. They both got out. He was as always, slightly amazed that Felicity didn’t stumble in her heels. 

“Oliver,” Samantha said, glancing nervously towards the front door. “What are you doing here?”

“I thought we should talk,” he said, also glancing towards the door. It was open and he could see a shadow moving inside. 

“About what?”

“I know my mother offered you two million dollars to lie to me and have an abortion.”

She sucked in her breath. “You don’t get to judge me,” she said, backing away from them. 

“No one’s judging you,” Felicity said, sympathy flooding her veins. She understood that kind of panic. “It had to be an odd situation.”

“You have no idea,” Samantha said, looking at Felicity, feeling more at ease talking to her than Oliver. 

“Oh I do actually,” Felicity answered, smoothing a hand down her front, without thinking. While the bump was hidden under a flowy top the motion made it visible. Samantha blinked, taking it in. 

“I just want to talk Sam,” Oliver said. The brunette glanced back at him. She opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted by a voice calling from inside the house.

“Mom! What’s for dinner?”

Oliver’s own heart constricted as a head stuck out the front door. It was a boy, brown hair like his mother, but Oliver saw a smile that reminded him painfully of Thea at that age. 

“Who are your friends?”

“No one sweetie,” she swallowed. “Just order a pizza online. I’ll be in soon.”

Oliver couldn’t look away from the door as the boy disappeared. “What’s his name?” he asked, voice raw.

“William.”

“That’s a good name.” He was surprised at the emotional edge he heard in his response. 

“What do you want Oliver?” She was defensive now. They both could hear it. 

“We just want to talk,” Felicity said, stepping forward, standing between them. “And possibly use your bathroom”

Samantha glanced at Felicity’s abdomen, once again hidden under the top. “Fine,” she agreed, “But keep your voices down.” 

Once in the house, Samantha directed Felicity to the bathroom off the kitchen and rounded on Oliver as soon as the blond was out of earshot.

“I see nothing’s changed with you. Still knocking up random girls.”

“Felicity’s not random. We’re engaged.” 

“Congratulations,” her voice was cold. 

“Thanks. Look Samantha I know this can’t be easy for you, and I don’t want to get off on the wrong foot here. I just want to talk.”

“About what?”

“Our son.”

“ _ My _ son,” she corrected him. 

Oliver raised an eyebrow. “If that’s the case then I assume you wouldn’t mind submitting to a DNA test to prove it?”

She didn’t answer, and that was all the confirmation he needed. 

“DNA doesn’t make him yours,” she said finally. “Being there for him makes him yours.”

“Well you didn’t exactly give me an opportunity to do that, did you?” he growled. 

“Your mother made it perfectly clear that wouldn’t be in his best interest.”

“So you took her money and ran?” He couldn’t help it that his voice went up an octave. She shushed him, looking panicked. 

“Yes,” she said, “And you don’t get to judge me for it. I was alone and pregnant, and you had a girlfriend. We barely knew each other, and I didn’t think I could have an abortion no matter how much money your mother offered, so I bribed a doctor to falsify some medical records for me, to get her off my back, and make sure she never looked for me.” 

“And to get the other million?”

“Yes, and to get the other million,” she snapped. “I’m a single mom and that money helped pay for this house. I built a life for my son, however, I could.”

“You could have come to me.”

“No, I couldn’t have. Laurel was my friend and we cheated on her, and I knew you were freaked out and would pick her. For all, I knew you put your mother up to it, and I didn’t want either of you near my son.”

“ _ Our _ son.” 

“Mine. How did you even find out about him?”

“My mother tried to pull the same move on Felicity and she told me what she did to you when I confronted her about it.” 

“She was under the impression I had an abortion. You had no reason to track me down.”

“Felicity looked into, and found you had a child about seven months after you told me you miscarried.” 

“That’s an invasion of privacy.”

“Birth certificates are public record,” he said, with a shrug, keeping his voice measured. He didn’t want his fiance’s hacking skills to be something Samantha knew about. If this was heading in the direction he thought it was heading in, he didn’t want her to have any ammo against him. 

Samantha grabbed a few dishes sitting on the counter and deposited them in the sink with a loud clatter. 

“What do you want Oliver?” she growled, as the bathroom door opened and Felicity entered the room. 

“I just want to get to know him, Samantha. I want to be a part of my son’s life, and I want him to get the chance to know his father, which I think every young boy deserves.”

“And if I say no?” 

Oliver glanced at Felicity as she came to his side. This was why he wanted her to wait in the car. He didn’t want her to hear this. 

“I’m not afraid to get lawyers involved.” He heard Felicity suck in a breath, and he took her hand, squeezing her fingers. “But I don’t want to. Me in a custody battle would be publicized and made to look as nasty as possible. I think we can agree that wouldn’t be in William’s best interest. I’d do it if I had to, but I would prefer for us to work this out privately.”

“No Oliver, even being in your orbit will put him on the media’s radar. He’s better off as far from your world as possible. That might be something she’s okay with for her child, but I’m not.”

“It’s not that bad, once you get used to it,” Felicity said. “Especially when you’re a kid. No one is interested in what a seven-year-old thinks of fashion or scandal. Yeah, he might get some attention when he gets older, but if we prep him now it won’t be terrible.”

“And you know this how?” Samantha demanded. 

“I’m Felicity Merlyn.”

“Felicity Merlyn,” Samantha repeated, eyes widening. “As in Tommy Merlyn’s kid sister? You knocked up your best friend’s sister? Real great.”

“I’m also his fiance.”

“Isn’t she way younger than you?”

“Only four years,” Oliver grumbled, crossing his arms.

Before Samantha could answer there was the sound of shuffling feet entering the kitchen and a small voice was talking quickly. 

“Mom, the wifi is out and I can’t order the pizza. Can you reset it? Who are these people?” 

Oliver’s breath caught in his throat. William was standing in the kitchen, wearing jeans and a t-shirt. He was holding an iPad loosely in one hand, brown eyes wide as he took in the scene in the kitchen. If he registered the tense energy, he didn’t give any clear indication. Oliver and Samantha were both frozen. Oliver was breathless. Samantha was terrified. 

“Hi I’m Felicity and this is...Oliver,” Felicity cut in, when it became obvious no other adult was going to speak. “We’re old friends of your mom,” she lied. “The wifi is out? I’m actually really good with this stuff, why don’t you show me the box?”

“Okay,” William said with a shrug. “It’s in Mom’s home office.” He turned and began to walk down the hall. Felicity followed him glancing nervously between Oliver and Samantha. 

“He has my nose,” Oliver whispered, and Samantha tensed. 

“No Oliver. You don’t get to show up after seven years and do the dad thing,” she hissed. “Just because you’ve decided you're ready  _ now _ .”

“You make it sound like I decided something back then. You told me you miscarried. You told my mom you had an abortion. You hid his existence from me. You let me decide nothing.”

“Are you really telling me you would have wanted to be a part of his life seven years ago?” she scoffed. “You couldn’t even commit to getting an apartment with Laurel.”

“I don’t know what I would have done seven years ago, but it doesn’t matter. The fact is I’m a different person. I’m here now. I know now, and I want to be a part of my son’s life. And he has the right to get to know his father.”

“I know you’re different. I saw the articles about you and Tommy being kidnapped and I’m sorry that happened. And I heard you’re starting a business and you somehow convinced Felicity Merlyn to marry you. But Oliver, you can’t tell me your life isn’t crazy. Do you really think William being around you is going to be good for him?” 

Oliver’s chest contracted. He constantly worried about contaminating Felicity or ruining the baby, and this was more delicate than that. He was about to concede the point when he heard the sound of Felicity giggling at something William said down the hall. He remembered a different sound she made once, outside Max Fuller’s club the night he found her after Malcolm had cut her off. He recalled the tear-stained eyes and running mascara as she told him what Malcolm had done. He remembered her strained voice as she spoke to Donna on the phone and the box of cards marking missed birthdays and opportunities for love sitting in their closet, all because Malcolm decided Felicity was better off without a parent. 

“Do you really think keeping a parent away from him is good for him?” he asked her back, shaking his head. “Yes my life might be crazy, and I might not handle things the way you would. But that doesn’t make me unimportant. I’m his father, and keeping me from him, lying to him, keeping secrets is going to damage not only his psyche and how he relates to other people, but his relationship with you. So you can try to insist that he’s better off without me, but I strongly disagree. I’m not going to let you decide that without putting up a fight.”

“Fine,” she growled. “Then call your lawyers because I’m not letting you near him unless a court orders me to.” 

“Fine,” he growled back. 

>>>\------->

“Do you want to talk about it?” Oliver asked, slowly shifting gears as they inched through Central City traffic. 

“I don’t like this,” Felicity said, one hand resting on her belly, the other rubbing at a spot on her neck. 

“I don’t either,” he agreed. “But she’s not leaving me a lot of options. What am I supposed to do?”

“I understand that it’s just,” she leaned her head back into the rest as they pulled into another stoplight. 

“You okay?” he asked. Glancing between her and the car in front of them. 

“Are you riding the breaks?” she asked, pressing one hand to her lips. 

“A little. Hard not to with the traffic.” 

“I think I’m going to be sick,” she whispered. 

“Hold on.” He zoomed ahead of the traffic when the light changed and pulled up to the curb. Felicity’s car door sprang open and she was heaving into a public trash can within seconds. Oliver put the car in park, cut the engine, and walked up behind her, rubbing her back gently. 

“Let’s get some water,” he said, spotting a coffee shop a few feet off. She nodded and followed him inside. She sat down heavily on one of the lounge chairs as he placed an order for a plain scone, a bottle of water, and a black coffee. 

She sipped the water slowly when he returned, but wrinkled her nose at the scone. It sat untouched between them. 

“I don’t like the idea of a messy custody battle,” she whispered. 

“I know, but I’m not trying to take him away from her Felicity. This isn’t like with your dad.”

“You say that now but after it drags on, I’m worried you’ll get frustrated with her.”

“It won’t drag on.”

“How do you know?”

“I already talked to Jean Loring about it okay?” he said, in a whisper. Felicity’s eyes widened. “She said I still have parental rights and the fact that she lied to me and accepted a bribe from my mother won’t play well for her in court. The worst she can say about me is that I was a party boy in my youth before a life-changing event. I have a better case than her.”

“You already talked to your family attorney about this? Before you even knew if Samantha would be receptive to you having a relationship with him?” 

“Yes,” he answered. “I was going to need her in on this regardless of what Samantha said. I want legal representation to draw up a custody agreement.”

“But she talked about how things would play in court?” Felicity whispered. Oliver pursed his lips. He didn’t like how pale she was looking and the sheen of sweat on her forehead.

“It’s her job to think that way. It wasn’t like I asked her.”

“I can’t do this. I can’t hear this,” she leaned forward covering her ears for a moment. 

“I’m not doing this to upset you. I have to be practical, and doing nothing isn’t an option. He’s my son.”

“You know what, it’s none of my business. Forget it. Let’s just go.”

“Felicity-”

“No,” she interrupted, getting to her feet. “I want to lie down before dinner with Thea.”

“You were just sick. You don’t have to get in the car right away.” 

But she didn’t seem to hear him. Her face was vacant. Her eyes looked far away. Her skin was still pale, and Oliver could see a sheen of sweat on her forehead.

“I need to get out here.” She walked out the door. Leaving her purse behind. 

“Felicity!’ He called after her, collecting her things and abandoning the scone and coffee, but by the time he hit the street, she was gone. He felt his stomach drop six feet.


	6. Chapter Five

It only took her twenty minutes to walk from the coffee shop to the hotel. She’d already made it four blocks before she registered that she’d left her purse, with her phone and hotel keys. She debated doubling back but knew Oliver would have grabbed them, and she didn’t want to be around him right now. It was fine. She could handle this. She’d walk to the hotel in silence to calm down her speeding brain and then beg the people in the lobby to let her use the phone to call him. That plan went out the window when she made it to the doors of the hotel. 

Tommy was crashing through them with a wild look in his eyes, and they nearly smacked headlong into each other. 

“Jesus Christ Lis!” he said, grabbing her shoulders. “You scared me.”

“I was standing in broad daylight. How could you not see me?”

“No, I got a call from Ollie that you ran out of a coffee shop and left your money, phone, keys, and ID behind.” 

She recognized the concerned, lecturing older brother tone, and let him lead her back through the doors, one arm wrapped around her shoulder. She noticed he was trying to subtly text someone with his free hand. 

“I’m a big girl Tommy,” she muttered, trying to shrug him off, but he wouldn’t let go of her and was steering her towards the hotel bar. “I can take care of myself.”

“You’ve wound up in the ER twice since you got pregnant. Ollie said you threw up and hadn’t eaten anything. You could have passed out again. And the people at the hospital would have had no way of knowing who you were or how to contact us.”

She sat in the stool, mostly to keep him happy, but was frowning nonetheless. 

“I’m pregnant, not made of porcelain.”

“Can we get a plate of cheese and crackers, a whiskey neat, a ginger ale, and two glasses of water?” Tommy asked the bartender, ignoring her.

“I can’t eat soft cheese.”

“Just eat the crackers then.” Her brother took the stool next to her, and they sat in silence waiting for the drinks. The restaurant was totally empty as 4:30 was not a popular drinks and appetizer time on a weekday. Tommy’s phone buzzed. 

“Oliver?” she asked, as he checked it.

“I’m just letting him know that I’ve got you, and that you’re both safe. He’s going to be a helicopter parent by the way.” 

Felicity was surprised to feel tears coming to her eyes, and she touched her bump without thinking. Tommy wrapped an arm around her again, nodding at the bartender as he set four glasses in front of them. 

“I don’t want to see him right now.”

“You don’t have to,” Tommy whispered, stroking her hair. 

“Did he tell you what happened?”

“With Samantha and William? Yeah, briefly. He mentioned you didn’t like he’d been in touch with a lawyer.”

“It’s so stupid,” she said, wiping her eyes. “He didn’t do anything wrong. Of course, he’d need a lawyer for a custody agreement or in case Samantha said no. Of course, he can’t just give up. This is his son, and he has to do it. I don’t know why I’m so upset.”

Tommy was silent for a moment, letting her press her face into his shoulder. 

“It seems a little obvious to me Lis.”

“I swear if you say pregnancy hormones, I’ll forward TMZ the pictures from the time you played Pretty Princesses with me.”

“I burned those.”

“JPEGs are not your friend, big brother,” she muttered. “I’ve got the money shot, where you have the pink lipstick, the tiara, and the clip-on earrings.”

“I wasn’t even going to say pregnancy hormones.”

“Oh, then what were you going to say?”

“You’re upset because of dad.” He waited a moment to let the words sink in, then continued. “You found out recently that your whole family history is a lie. That Mom and Dad used family court to take you away from Donna, to take you away from a part of yourself, and that’s upset your whole world. I imagine now, getting to know Donna, you’re grieving the childhood you could have had with three loving parents. And you’re mad at Dad because you feel like he stole that from you. And this thing with William reminds you of that.”

She bit her lip, hearing the truth in his words, even if she didn’t want to admit it.

“But Lis, that’s not what Ollie is doing. That’s what Samantha is doing. She’s trying to take Oliver away from William and depriving him of what he is offering. This boy could have two loving parents and one kick-ass stepmom. Ollie's not dad in this equation. He’s Donna Smoak.”

Felicity laughed in spite of herself, pulling back from Tommy's embrace.

“You haven’t met Donna yet, but I promise you, that’s where their similarities end.” 

“Not true,” Tommy said, taking a sip of his whiskey. “They both love you.”

The bartender returned with the crackers and cheese, and Felicity ignored the Bree, picking up a cracker instead and nibbling at it. Tommy’s shoulders relaxed slightly. 

“He asked me to come you know,” Tommy told her, grabbing a cracker and dipping it into the cheese. He was happy to have that to himself.

“Really?” she said, sipping the soda. “I thought after everything that happened, things were still weird between you two.”

“Oh, they are,” Tommy agreed. “I still want to punch him in the face a lot, and he is definitely not confiding in me the way he used to. The thing you said about us needing to find a new dynamic is completely true, but we’ll get there.”

“Then why’d he ask you to come?”

“For you. He was worried you’d be upset if he had to threaten a custody battle, and thought you could use someone to talk to.” 

She set down her glass slowly, cracker loose in her hand. 

“He loves you, and he thinks about you and how the things he does affect you. Don’t tell him I said this, but he’s actually probably going to be a good husband. Still not good enough for you, but kinda close.” 

She took Tommy’s hand and squeezed his fingers.

“Thank you for coming for me.”

“I’m your brother,” he said squeezing her hand back. “It’s what I do.” 

The doors to the restaurant banged open and a very frazzled Oliver came in, looking completely ridiculous with her green leather handbag on his arm. His wild eyes found them in the deserted restaurant easily.

“Don’t ever do that again!” he hollered. Felicity had to bite her lip to keep from laughing. He looked like a cartoon, on the verge of stamping his feet and pulling out his hair. She didn’t answer, but got up, crossed the bar, and wrapped her arms around his chest. He was still huffing but begrudgingly engulfed her.

“Sorry,” she whispered so only he could hear her. He let out a last puff of air and all his anger seemed to evaporate with it. He squeezed her tighter. 

>>>\------->

“What kind of wine were we thinking?” Thea asked. “Lis you always have lots of opinions on wine. Do you want to choose?”

The four of them were sitting at a back table, slightly removed from the rest of the crowded restaurant. Oliver was grateful for that, as he’d seen several patrons recognize the party of four. Part of him suspected a few paparazzi would be outside the restaurant when they left. Felicity took the wine menu slowly from Thea, glancing down the list. 

“The Lafite Rothschild is good,” she said, feeling a pang in her gut at missing out on that. 

“Four glasses?” the server asked. 

“Just three,” Felicity answered, setting the menu back in the middle of the table. “I’ll just have water.”

“What Lis!” Thea scolded. “You can’t have French food without wine. You taught me that.”

“Thea,” Oliver said, looking across the table at his sister. “Don’t pressure people to drink if they don’t want to.”

“I’m just saying, I thought she was here to blow off steam from grad school. So far all she’s done is chill at the hotel and stay super hydrated rather than drinking the best bottle of wine ever.”

“You aren’t even old enough to drink,” Oliver said, momentarily distracted. “How do you know it’s the best wine?”

“I’m in college,” she answered, waving her hand dismissively.

“I don’t remember drinking many bottles of wine in college,” Tommy said. He was seated next to Thea across from Felicity. He glanced at his sister who was suddenly very absorbed in the menu. She was biting her lip, and he just knew a long-winded babble was seconds away from pouring from her lips.

“Some of us are too classy for beer Tommy,” Thea said, tossing her long hair over her shoulder. 

Thankfully the waitress returned with said bottle of wine and to take their orders, cutting off the conversation. As she left, Thea leaned back in her chair, surveying her companions.

“You guys never told me what you were doing here,” she was addressing the table, but looking at Oliver. “I’m starting to wonder if Mom sent you here to check up on me.”

“She didn’t send us,” Oliver said quickly. It took effort not to mutter about how they’d have to be speaking for that. 

“She was weird when I brought up that you were coming to town,” Thea said.

“You spoke to her?” Felicity asked. Thea frowned.

“Of course, she is my mother. I talk to her at least once a week.”

“And she’s sounded okay the past month or so?” Felicity asked. Oliver cleared his throat, doing his best to keep his eyes on Thea.

“Yes. Why wouldn’t she be okay? What happened a month ago?’

“Well-” Felicity began, but Oliver recognized the tone. He cut across what was promising to be her most epic babble yet. 

“Felicity and I are engaged.”

Silence. Felicity used the pause to slip the ring out of her pocket and back on her finger.

“Engaged in criminal activity or…I don’t understand.”

“They’re getting married,” Tommy said, taking a large sip of wine from his glass. “Which I’m totally okay with,” he added when Felicity glared at him. “It’s not weird at all.”

Thea let out a shriek and launched herself at Oliver. The hacker just managed to save their two glasses of wine, and by extension the table cloth, as the brunette wrapped her arms around her brother’s neck. 

“Oh. My. God! This is amazing!” she was rocking him back and forth slightly, and she let out a squeal and squeezed tighter. 

“Can’t breath,” he said. She released him and turned to Felicity.

“Ring. Let me see.” 

Felicity extended her left hand, which Thea grabbed, bringing in closer for inspection. 

“Oh Ollie, it’s gorgeous.”

“Always the tone of surprise. Like I don’t have good taste.”

“I didn’t even know you guys were dating.”

“They kept it secret,” Tommy said, taking another large sip of wine and moving to refill his glass. 

“Why?” 

Felicity didn’t answer, just raised her eyebrows and looked pointedly at her brother, who was flagging down the waitress to order something stronger. 

“Oh,” Thea said, giggling in understanding, “That I get, but you could have told me. I live across the country.”

“We kinda liked being in our own bubble about it,” Oliver said, wrapping an arm around Felicity’s shoulders, happy to be able to touch her again. “Keeping each other to ourselves.”

“Gross,” she said, releasing Felicity’s hand and taking a sip of her wine. “I see why Tommy needs to be drunk to be around you guys.”

Felicity was biting her lip, watching the wine longingly. Oliver squeezed her shoulder, trying to seem relaxed. 

“So when’s the wedding? I know you can’t have everything planned already. But do you have a preferred date or a venue in mind?” 

Oliver and Felicity glanced at each other. They hadn’t thought about the wedding honestly. The condom had broken the night they’d got engaged, and aside from her wearing the ring and telling people they were fiances, neither had actually done anything about the wedding itself. 

“We haven’t talked about it yet,” Felicity admitted, wishing she had her own wine to sip. It seemed to be what people did at this table when they were feeling awkward. “Things got busy and it got away from us a little.”

“Oh well, I can help. Maybe a winter wedding, that would be so cute!” 

Felicity grimaced. She was due in early December. They hadn’t talked about getting married before the baby came. She didn’t know where she stood on that front, but she was positive she didn’t want to get married when she was that heavily pregnant. 

“We haven’t talked about it yet,” Oliver repeated. “We’ve been busy with other things.”

“What could possibly be more important than planning your wedding to the best girl in the world, Ollie? Don’t tell me you have been prioritizing the club over Lis!”

“We’re pregnant,” Felicity burst out. She hadn’t actually told anyone yet. Well, technically she’d told Tommy, but he’d already figured it out so she didn’t have to say the words, let alone to someone who was still reeling from news of the engagement. 

“Well, he’s not pregnant. I’m pregnant. It’s weird how people say ‘we’re pregnant’ when really the guy isn’t pregnant at all. When you think about it, the saying kind of takes away from women. Makes it sound like the guy is helping do the work when really they’re not doing anything. Not that you don’t do anything,” she added quickly to Oliver, who raised an eyebrow. “You’ve actually been very sweet and overprotective, almost annoyingly so and-”

“You’re pregnant?” Thea interrupted. 

“Yes,” Felicity said, biting her lip, staring nervously at her future sister-in-law. “Thirteen weeks today.” 

There was another loud squeal, and Felicity was embraced by the teenager too. This time no one saved the wine. Oliver swore, standing up from the table to avoid the overspill and spreading stain. He noticed as he did so, that several people had their phones out and were covertly filming them. He didn’t worry too much about it. They were far enough removed, and the restaurant was loud enough that so long as no one yelled there wouldn’t be any audio.

“This is the best news ever!” Thea shrieked. 

“Shh,” Oliver said, smacking his sister on the arm. “People are staring and starting to film, and I’d rather this didn’t pop up on TMZ.” 

The waitress emerged out of nowhere and, as soon as Thea was convinced to let go of Felicity, the table cloth was cleared, the glasses were replaced and refilled, and the party settled back in their chairs. Tommy had sat through the whole scene, nursing his whiskey. 

“I’m going to be an aunt,” Thea hummed happily, sipping her wine. Oliver felt a pang in his gut when he realized his sister already was an aunt. He glanced at Felicity. She looked back at him, and though she was smiling, he could see in her eyes she had the same thought. He wasn’t ready to tell Thea about William yet. That was too fresh. 

“Yes,” Oliver said slowly, taking Felicity's hand. She squeezed it. “You’re going to be an aunt.” 

“We have to go shopping tomorrow Lis. I understand now why the wedding was put on the back burner. I never thought I’d say this, but who cares about wedding dresses when there are onesies to buy.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A nice happy reaction for once. Isn't that so satisfying? I loved writing this chapter, and I'm happy you all get to read it now. Olicity deserved someone to be happy for them. I always knew Thea would be over the moon about being an aunt. 
> 
> A few people were a little mad at Felicity at the end of the last chapter. Let me say I get why people would be upset. Oliver didn't do anything wrong, but neither did Felicity. The situation was triggering for her, given her history, and she had a very reasonable reaction and needed some time to process. Plus we got more Tommy and Felicity out of the whole thing, and the two of them as brother and sister just make my heart happy. 
> 
> Thank you all for the comments and kudos and for reading! I truly love it and appreciate all of you! Please stay safe and healthy!


	7. Chapter Six

Oliver had to admit to being very impressed with Jean Loring. He’d called her after finding Felicity in the bar with Tommy, and less than 24 hours later she’d filed for a court-ordered paternity test and a custody hearing pending the results. The judge had approved the paternity test order and gave Oliver and Samantha one week to comply. Oliver did so immediately, stopping by a lab to have his cheek swabbed. Samantha however was dragging her feet. He’d been in Central City seven days and today was her last day to get William tested.

Felicity and Tommy had returned to Star City. The club had been released from its crime scene status. Tommy was interviewing new contractors. Oliver cared less about the contractors and more about Felicity. She’d had class and had never planned on staying more than a weekend. She’d spent most of that weekend with Thea, who dragged her from store to store, in order to make sure she had “the most stylish maternity wardrobe to grace the cover of People magazine.” 

Officially, Oliver was still in Central City because he was helping Thea pack. She’d finished her finals and had to be out of her dorms by the end of the day. She’d agreed to spending the summer at the mansion and interning at QC. Oliver arrived that morning, coffee in hand to help her pack and get her things to the movers, and found her on the phone. 

“No Mom, Ollie and I are good.” He froze in the door, and she smiled happily at him, beckoning him in. He came in slowly, handing her a coffee.

“Yes, he just walked in. I swear he’s been like a lost puppy all week without Felicity.” 

Thea paused nodding. 

“No, she went back because she has summer classes.”

Another pause. More nodding. 

“I don’t know. I’ll ask him.” She covered the phone with her hand. “Mom wants to know if you have someone working Felicity’s security.”

“Yes.”

“He says yes.” She paused again. “Why don’t you just talk to him yourself?” She made to give Oliver the phone and having no other option he took it.

“Hello.”

“Oliver. I’ve been calling.”

“I didn’t really feel like talking.”

“Darling I just want to say I’m sorry. I was only doing what I thought was best.”

He glanced at Thea and smiled before stepping into the hallway and letting the door close behind him. 

“I don’t want to talk to you about it. You have no idea the damage you’ve done.”

“You’re being dramatic. I know Felicity's fine. Your father told me.”

“This is not about Felicity. This is about Samantha.”

“That’s really not a big deal, Oliver. I took care of it.”

“No, you didn’t.”

There was a long pause. 

“What are you talking about?”

“I can’t tell you this over the phone. I’ll talk to you later when I drop Thea off.” He hung up, momentarily missing his flip phone and the click it used to make. Hitting a touch screen just wasn’t satisfying. He passed Thea her phone back as he entered the room and started assembling boxes.

“So,” she said, trying to keep her voice casual. “Lis will be fourteen weeks along today.”

“Yes. Baby is the size of an orange.”

“And are we finding out the sex?”

“Haven’t talked about it.”

“Please find out the sex! I need to know if I’m having a niece or nephew. It will greatly influence the shopping.”

Oliver felt a led weight drop into his stomach at her words. His own phone began to ring and he recognized Jean’s number. He stepped into the hall again.

“Jean?”

“Oliver hi.”

“Any news.”

“She brought him in this morning. The lab tech made a note that apparently William didn’t know what they were doing there. She told him it was a test to see how healthy he was.”

“And?”

“Perfect match. Congratulations. You’re a dad.” 

He leaned heavily against the wall, burying his face in his hands. He took a deep shaking breath. 

“What are our next steps?”

“We approach Samantha with shared custody and visitation rights. I assume you’ll want to set up some kind of trust fund, so I’ll fold that into the offer and see if she agrees. If not we will have to go to mediation and if we’re unable to come to a resolution, family court.”

“I haven’t thought about partial custody or visitation.”

“Normally in this kind of scenario, where the two parents live in different cities, you request a certain number of weekends during the school year and a longer period of time in the summer, plus alternating holidays and birthdays.”

“Right.”

“You can talk it over with Felicity. See what she’s up for.” 

“This whole thing has her on edge.”

“Not surprising given her history. I was a junior partner when Malcolm sued her biological mother for full custody. That got nasty.”

“I didn’t know you worked on that case.”

“Not me personally, but the firm did. I heard about it through the grapevine and office gossip. But this won’t be like that. You don’t want full custody?”

“Of course not. I don’t want to take him away from his mother. I just want...I want him to know me and have a relationship with me and Felicity and his future sibling.”

“It shouldn’t drag on. These things are about what is in the best interest for the child, and having a loving relationship with both parents is a no-brainer.”

“Then how did Merlyn get Felicity away from Donna?”

There was a beat before she answered.

“Between you and me I always thought he bribed the judge.”

“Of course.” 

“Anyway. Try to get back to me at the end of the day with the specifics of what you’re wanting and I’ll write up a formal proposal and have it to her lawyer. Hopefully, we’ll have this taken care of in less than a month.”

“Will do.”

“Also Oliver, you have a three-bedroom right?”

“Yeah.”

“Make one a bedroom for William. That’ll help the case.”

“Already turning one into a nursery so it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“Wonderful and congratulations again. I know it’s stressful and probably not how you pictured it, but you’re doing the right thing by him. It’s going to be okay.”

“Thanks, Jean.” He hung up, relieved to be off the phone. His heart was pounding in his chest. He shot Felicity a quick text, telling her the news and that he’d talk to her about it later. Before going back into his sister’s dorm and helping her pack. It took ages just to go through her closet. He marveled at how someone so small could have so much stuff. The whole time his sister rattled on and on about the baby and how she was thinking they should do the nursery. Listening to her go on and on he knew she’d be over the moon about William, at least once the shock wore off.

>>>\------->

“Mom, I’m back!” Thea called, walking in through the front door, without knocking. She did live there technically. 

“Miss Thea!” came Raisa’s voice from down the hall. She was on Thea in an instant cupping her cheeks and scolding her in Russian for being too skinny. Thea blushed but didn’t object as Raisa guided her to the kitchen to eat some cookies. 

“Oliver?” Moira’s voice was soft as she stuck her head out of the sitting room. He stood in the hall, having no desire to venture deeper into the house. His mother must have sensed his refusal to enter her domain and stepped out to meet him. “What’s going on?”

“Samantha apparently lied to you too,” he growled, turning towards the door. His mother launched herself after him, grabbing his arm. He yanked it out of her grasp. “Don’t touch me.”

“Oliver, what are you talking about?” Her voice was high-pitched, frazzled.

“She didn’t have an abortion. I have a son.”

Moira sucked in a breath. 

“He’s seven, and named William and he lives in Central City.”

Moira paled, and Oliver felt sick himself.

“And before you say anything I took a paternity test. It’s a match. I had to prove genetic relation in order to pursue partial custody.”

“You’re-”

“I’m not looking for comments about this from you.”

“Oh, my beautiful boy.”

Oliver looked at her for a long hard moment. Tears were coming to her eyes. She covered her mouth, shaking her head slowly.

“I’m so sorry. I didn’t mean for this to happen.”

“Thea knows about me and Felicity and the baby. I haven’t told her about William yet. You should tell her the backstory yourself probably. I was hoping to keep this from her, protect her from what you did, but that’s apparently not an option anymore. And it’d be better coming from you.”

“Oliver I-”

“I don’t want to hear it. If you decide not to tell her, text me, and I’ll do it myself.” He turned on his heels and walked out the door to where Digg stood, waiting by the Bentley. The house attendants had just finished unloading Thea’s overnight bags. He climbed into the front seat, not giving a damn about decorum. 

“I’m assuming Felicity told you?” he asked, slamming the door. 

“Yes,” John said, turning the ignition over and pulling out of the driveway. “Two kids in one year, man. That’s a lot.”

“I want to punch something.”

“Understandable.” 

Oliver took the time to wrap his knuckles this time, mostly because John made him. They spent the evening sparing and waiting for Felicity to return from the library with Rob. She didn’t get home till ten, yawning and kicking off her heels. Oliver could see her through the open door to the third bedroom. He could tell from here she’d officially transitioned into maternity clothes. 

“Hey Digg,” she said, smiling sleepily at him as they emerged from the extra bedroom. “Working late?”

“You’re one to talk,” Digg scolded, pulling her into a brief hug, before nodding to Rob. “I’ll be here at 8:30 tomorrow to take you to class.”

“Thanks, Digg,” Oliver said, nodding to his friend as he left. Once the door was closed he walked over to Felicity and engulfed her into a long lingering hug. 

“You’re all sweaty,” she commented, running her fingers up his arms. He growled slightly at her words, and she blushed. He felt her heart rate quicken. He bent his knees, lifting her off the ground and she shrieked slightly, arms and legs wrapping around him automatically. 

“Oliver,” she scolded as he carried her towards the bedroom. “Not yet we have to talk.” 

“Yes,” he agreed. “There’s someone I really want to talk to.” He set her down on the bed, carefully. He cupped either side of her belly, framing it perfectly and smothering over the ruffles of her top.

“Hi baby,” he whispered, he dropped a kiss onto the highest point of the bump. 

“The internet says he/she has ears now, but can’t hear yet,” Felicity commented, lifting herself up slightly on her elbows so she could see him.

“Don’t care,” he muttered, leaning closer to the bump again. “You’re probably an early bloomer like your mommy. She finished things like school way too early. I missed you both.”

“We would like to know what is happening with baby’s older brother,” Felicity said, sitting up. Oliver fell back on his knees, looking up at her from the floor. He didn’t let go of her bump. 

“Jean says I need to submit specifics of what I want in terms of custody. She’ll present it to Samantha and her lawyer, and we’ll see what they say.”

“What do you want in terms of custody?”

“I don’t know. Jean says people usually ask for weekends during the school year, extended time over the summer and alternating holidays, plus special occasions.”

“So?”

“I hadn’t thought about it. I want a relationship with him, but I don’t want to upset his life.”

“What about just one weekend a month he comes here? And one weekend a month you go there?”

“How will that work when the baby comes? I don’t want to leave you alone that long.”

“Then?”

He sighed. He’d run through it again and again on the train. “One weekend a month he comes here, we get six weeks in the summer and the alternating holiday thing is fine. Plus I get at least one phone call with him a week. But he comes to the wedding and he's here for a few weeks after the baby is born, to bond.”

“Child support?”

“You think she needs more money than the 2 million dollar bribe she took?” he was surprised to hear how angry and growly he was. 

“It might be nice to offer, just to keep things at least partially civil with her. Plus maybe it would keep you guys out of family court.” 

He sighed, pressing his forehead to her bump. She ran her fingers through his hair.

“I’m not opposed to it.”

“You aren’t giving the money to her. It’s for him,” she reminded him. “And I’m pretty sure you can ask for proof that she spent it on William, not herself. Besides, she’s not a bad mom Oliver. She just wants what’s best for her son.”

“I know,” he moved to crawl into bed next to her, but she pushed him lightly. He backed off, quirking an eyebrow at her. 

“No. You need to call Jean and let her know what you’re asking for ASAP. Plus I just washed these sheets. You have to go shower first.”

“Fine,” he growled, leaning over her and pulling her into a bruising kiss. “I’ll go call Jean and clean myself off and come back here, just to make us both super sweaty, in your nice clean sheets.” He nipped at her neck before pushing off her and heading to the bathroom. “Makes perfect sense!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Tuesday! I'm so happy to be updating this chapter, as always. I love this fanfic! It is all the drama I crave, and I'm so happy to be the one bringing it to you all. Thank you all for reading, leaving kudos, and commenting. 
> 
> I'm getting very sick of this pandemic, and writing this is making me feel a million times better. I hope it's bringing you all some joy in these difficult times.
> 
> Please stay safe and healthy!


	8. Chapter Seven

Oliver registered three things when he woke up the next morning. The first was that the bed next to him was cold. He stretched out but found no warm Felicity. The second thing was that something was stuck to his forehead. He pulled it off. It was one of her panda sticky notes. 

**John took me to class. Also, your mother called. A lot. Love you! -FM**

The third thing was that there was a loud banging coming from his front door. He groaned getting out of bed, pulling on a pair of sweatpants, and making his way to the entrance.

“Hold on,” he grumbled, rubbing the sleep from his eyes and checking the peephole. His sister’s face greeted him. He sighed and unlocked the door. 

“Thea,” he said, leaning against the frame. “You’re here early.”

“Mom told me the most ridiculous story,” she said, pushing past him into his new living space. “She said you aren’t speaking to her because she tried to bribe Felicity into having an abortion and you found out she’d done the same thing to someone you went to college with.”

Oliver scrubbed his face and checked the time. It was 9 am, and he hadn’t even had coffee yet. 

“Why don’t you sleep in like most college students?”

“Oliver!”

“What?”

“Tell me our mother has lost her mind and started inventing stories while I’ve been gone. Tell me she has early-onset Alzheimer's or something.”

“She does not have early-onset Alzheimer’s, at least not as far as I know.” He moved into the kitchen and his sister followed him. He found a half pot of coffee Felicity left, still warm on the burner. “Did you want coffee?”

“So it’s true?” Thea sat heavily in one of the stools. She leaned against the counter. “Oh my god.”

Oliver didn’t answer. He just poured himself a coffee and took a long sip. 

“Is that why you came to Central City? To find that girl mom bribed and apologize?”

“We went to see you and to find Samantha Clayton yes, but not to apologize.”

“You should apologize to her. Poor thing.”

“We went to find her because Felicity found a birth certificate online. She lied to mom to get the money. I have a seven-year-old son.” 

“WHAT!” 

“His name is William, and he lives in Central City with Samantha, in a house that she bought with our mother’s bribe money.”

“Oh my god,” Thea said, covering her mouth. “Ollie.”

“It’s fine. I’m handling it.”

“How?”

“I’m trying to get partial custody.”

“I can’t believe it.” Thea stared up at the ceiling. “How could she do this? Does dad know?”

“About William? I have no idea. I’m done handling our parents, Thea. I have too much on my plate.” 

“I’ll say. Last time I saw you was at Christmas. You and Tommy went bar hopping, and I had to bail you out of the drunk tank. Now you’re starting a business, engaged, and trying to get custody of a seven-year-old.”

“You forgot I have a baby on the way.” Oliver took a slow sip of coffee. Thea stared at him hard. 

“What do you need?”

“Nothing. I’m handling it.”

“Bullshit. That’s too much for one person to handle. What do you need?”

“Jean Lorning wants me to convert one of the rooms here into a bedroom for William, to help my case.” 

“Decorating! I can do that. How about the business or Felicity?”

“Just the decorating is fine Thea. You’re supposed to be interning at QC this summer anyway.”

“Oh, there’s no way that’s happening. If you aren’t talking to mom, neither am I. I’ve decided I work for you and Tommy. Also, I’m staying here.” She got off the stool and clapped her hands. “Now we might as well do the nursery at the same time. Let me see what I’m working with.”

“Wait? What!” Oliver said, processing her words and following her down the hall. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I realize now this chapter is very short. I should have combined it with the last one. Oops. The good news is though that the next chapter is on the long side and has so much delicious drama. I don't think you all will be able to guess. Feel free to try though. 
> 
> Thank you all so much for reading, and please stay safe and healthy!


	9. Chapter Eight

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I feel a little evil, and like I'm going to cackle. The drama that is coming is just so my favorite thing. Tuesdays are becoming my favorite. 
> 
> Happy Reading! Please stay safe and healthy!

On the day of Tommy’s wedding, Felicity’s head was pounding. She’d been through refittings all of the week before, the seamstresses grumbling about how they’d have appreciated the heads up she was pregnant. Laurel was also still getting fitted and they had to make awkward small talk. Felicity honestly didn’t mind Laurel, but things had been awkward since her relationship with Oliver had gone public. Between that and Thea living with them and dragging her baby shopping, it was no wonder Felicity had a headache.

She’d been dreading this day for so many reasons. She didn’t want to have to stand at an altar for a whole service, as her feet were starting to hurt and her back was getting sore. She was dreading pregnancy brain making her forget something. It hadn’t kicked in yet, but she was feeling super paranoid about it. But the two biggest reasons she’d been dreading this day were 1) the media and 2) her father. Today would mark her and Oliver’s first public appearance as a couple, and while news of their engagement and pregnancy had spread amongst their friends, the tabloids had somehow, miraculously, not picked up on it. However, Felicity’s engagement ring was firmly in place and her sixteen-week baby bump was very obvious in her tight skimpy bridesmaid’s dress. 

As far as seeing Malcolm Merlyn went, well, who would want to see Malcolm under the best of circumstances? Tommy had not gone for her suggestion to just uninvite him. 

“Crazy idea,” Felicity muttered to Oliver as he pulled the Bently up to the parking lot, before the service. “What if we just skipped the reception?”

“I’m supposed to give a speech. I think they’d notice if I wasn’t there.” 

“Call it revenge for Tommy splitting your lip?” 

He cut the engine. “It won’t be that bad.”

“Easy for you to say. The parent you aren’t speaking to won’t be there.”

“Don’t stress about Malcolm. He probably won’t even talk to you.”

“You don’t know him. He’s going to want to sneer about this,” she said, gesturing at her belly. “Make some comment about my inferior genetics or something.”

“If he does, give me a signal and I’ll punch him in the face.” Oliver leaned over to her side, kissing her gently on the lips. 

“I’m not into the toxic masculinity thing,” she muttered, cupping his face. “But it’s kinda hot when you get all growly and promise to beat up my dad.” 

The grin that cracked across his face was positively wicked. “I’ll keep that in mind for tonight.” Then he pulled away and opened the car door. She let out an indigent noise and followed. 

“We don’t have to wait for tonight. We could peel out of here right now.”

“It’ll be better if we wait,” he promised, taking her hand, and leading her into the church. “Now watch your mouth. This is a house of God, I hear.”

“Well, now I’m going to spend all day making accidental innuendos.” 

He chuckled as they walked in the door. The wedding planner instantly separated them, chastising Oliver for leaving the groom alone for so long. What kind of best man was he? 

Felicity slipped away from the lecture into the bridal suite. She found Laurel and her sister, Sara, helping her into the most gorgeous white dress. 

“Felicity!” Sara said happily, spotting her in the mirror, as she did up the buttons on the back of Laurel’s dress. 

“You look so beautiful!” Felicity cooed. Laurel smiled, the look not quite reaching her eyes. 

“I hear congratulations are in order,” Sara said, stepping around Laurel and taking Felicity’s hands and extending them out, leaving her bump on display. “Laurel you’re going to be an aunt!” 

Felicity forced a smile, pulling her hands out of Sara’s grip. She was just now registering that Oliver had slept with both sisters. She’d been aware of it of course, but she’d been in Boston when the affair and subsequent break up went down. It was a minor miracle Laurel had forgiven him. Though, it was probably easier after he’d been kidnapped less than 24 hours later. 

“It’s Laurel’s day,” Felicity said, stepping over to where the bride stood on the pedestal. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I could use a drink.” She looked very serious.

“This bridal party is like the driest event I’ve ever been to,” Sara whined. 

“Well the bride’s been through the twelve steps and the only other bride’s maid is pregnant. What did you expect?” Laurel was getting snappy, so Felicity cut across the building sisterly tension. 

“Oliver snuck in a bottle of vodka. He pulled it off the top shelf this morning,” Felicity said. 

“Oh,” Sara perked up. “Would you kill me if I went to steal some?”

“No, go,” Laurel encouraged. “I wanted to talk to Felicity anyway.” 

The hacker’s guts dropped and she felt woozy all of the sudden. She took a seat on a stool as Sara departed in search of vodka. 

“I wanted to ask if you were mad at me?” Laurel said, eyes clouding.

“What?” Felicity said, jaw-dropping slightly.

“Well, we never really talked after you told Tommy you and Ollie were engaged and having a baby.”

“We never talked much before that,” Felicity said slowly. Laurel had been around in one capacity or another her whole life. Tommy had been fawning over her since long before she’d been Oliver’s girlfriend. Felicity had always assumed Laurel dismissed her as just Tommy’s little sister, not someone to be taken seriously. 

“But we could talk when we wanted to, and you’d come over for dinner and we’d make fun of Tommy. Then out of nowhere that just stopped.”

“Well I couldn’t exactly leave Oliver behind for that, and I thought it’d be weird if your future sister-in-law showed up with your ex-boyfriend on her arm. And that’s not even including the fact that Oliver and Tommy are still being weird with each other. Like they say it’s gotten better, but I don’t think they’re talking much about anything other than the club. And I don’t know about you, but that actually kind of bothers me because like their relationship survived Tommy being in love with you and Oliver dating you and then cheating on you and then your break up with Oliver and the kidnapping and then Tommy dating you and-”

“Felicity,” Laurel said. Felicity took a long breath. She felt winded. Laurel had let her go on for a long time. “I know it’s awkward. You’re pregnant with my ex-boyfriend's baby. But we’re going to be sisters today and we have to be able to talk about this shit.”

“You shouldn’t swear in church.”

Laurel ignored her and walked over to Felicity. She extended her arms, and Felicity rose so they were both standing. Laurel squeezed her hands. 

“I just want you to know, I don’t care. Ollie and I are ancient history. He’s not even the same person he was when we were dating, thank god. He’s a good man now, and I’m so happy you two are together. You’re good for each other, and you guys are going to be great parents.” 

Felicity let out a long slow breath. Something in her was finally relaxing. She’d been unaware how tense it had been till it released. Her headache was even getting better. 

“Thank you, Laurel. And I’m really glad my brother is marrying you. He loves you so much, and you’re actually too kickass for him.”

“You shouldn’t swear in church.” 

Felicity turned red. 

“Now do you need me to help with the custody battle?” Laurel said, crossing her arms, suddenly not bride like at all, but very lawyer.

“Tommy told you?”

“Yes, and before you say anything, I don’t care that Ollie cheated on me with a friend from linguistics. It was years ago. I care that she’s trying to keep him away from his kid because the man he is now deserves to know his children.” 

Felicity smiled. 

“I’m sure he didn’t ask you, because of all the previously mentioned  _ awkwardness _ but if you offered he’d love your opinion. Jean Loring has been working the case, and they have a hearing scheduled for Monday.”

“Good,” she said nodding, all business-like. “I’ll corner him at the reception.”

“Or you could just focus on your wedding.” 

They were interrupted by the door opening and Sara reentering with a plastic cup of vodka. “We gotta get this show on the road my sober ladies!” 

>>>\------->

The service was blessedly short. Felicity was escorted down the aisle by one of Oliver and Tommy’s friends from high school or maybe college. She couldn’t remember, but once he deposited her at the head table, she gratefully kicked off her shoes, happy no one could see under the table cloth. She’d notice everyone staring throughout the ceremony and she’d definitely been captured, clearly pregnant by at least one paparazzi on her way into the reception. Since she’d spent most of the day without Oliver at her side, everyone was clearly speculating about her situation and who the father was. She did her best to ignore it, but she felt a pair of two particular eyes boring into her head. She did her best to avoid them, focusing on Oliver and Sara’s toasts. 

But when the servers came round with dinner she looked up and made eye contact with her father. He was glaring, jaw tense, face turning red. She met his glare with one of her own, casually swallowing some of her sparkling water. She was too busy with her staring contest to actually eat her dinner. It wasn’t till her plate was whisked away and Oliver slipped into Sara’s empty seat that Felicity registered the reception was in full swing. 

“You okay?” he asked, ice clinking in his glass. She tore her eyes away from Malcolm to look at him. His tie was slightly loosened, but not quite undone yet, the way it would be by the end of the night. She could tell he’d been drinking by his half-cocked smile and the gleam in his eyes. 

“Fine,” she answered. “I think you should give me the keys.” 

“Digg already took them.” He drained his glass, setting it down next to her empty sparkling water. “We should dance.”

“You sure you want to be seen with an unmarried pregnant woman? People will talk.” She was trying to be smart, make him laugh. He was already pulling her to her feet, smiling when he saw she’d kicked off her shoes. 

“And here I thought you loved heels,” he said, pulling her into him on the dance floor. She fitted her head against his chest, as his hand settled on her lower back. “They’re like your armor.”

“I do love them, just not when I have an avocado in my uterus, messing with my hormones.”

“Swollen feet aren’t a symptom yet.”

“Tell that to my ankles,” she muttered, inhaling. He smelled like sandalwood and leather. She let out a hum of contentment but felt him stiffen against her. 

“What?” she asked, starting to pull back. Before he could answer though a hand was on her shoulder spinning her around.

“I’m cutting in,” her father growled, eyes shooting daggers at Oliver. 

“Felicity,” her fiance growled, fist balling.

“It’s fine Oliver.” She shot him a look meant to comfort him. “Go check on Tommy.” 

He didn’t drop his gaze as he stepped off the dance floor, but she knew he wasn’t going far. 

“Do you have any shame?” her father asked. “You’re literally barefoot and pregnant at your brother’s wedding, hanging off a man who is not your husband.”

“Yes, the scandal, two engaged adults dancing.”

“You’re-” He stumbled, and Felicity felt victorious.

“None of your business.” 

“Moira said you had your claws in him, but I didn’t realize how deep. I imagine the love child helps,” he said, casting his eyes down towards her belly.

“You’re sick,” she said, pulling back from him. 

“And you’re just like your whore of a mother. I shouldn’t have been surprised, you’d use what’s between your legs to get ahead, considering your genetics.” 

Felicity felt herself turn red. Her loud voice was bubbling her throat. She opened her mouth to argue, but before she could find the words strong enough, a fist connected with her father’s jaw and knocked him to the ground. She stepped back, head reeling, but instead of Oliver standing over her father, it was her brother.

“Shut up,” Tommy growled, before Malcolm launched himself at his son, landing a few hits of his own.

_ Frack. _


	10. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As promised, here is your Tuesday update! I know I left it on a cliffhanger, but I don't think you guys are going to feel much better at the end of this. I'll leave it there.

“I’m getting really sick of this police station!” Felicity yelled as she stormed past the receptionist and into the bull pin. Oliver was trailing behind her. He was still a little tipsy but seemed less drunk than at the wedding. His tie had come completely undone. Behind him was Laurel, white dress crinkling, hair falling out of its updo. She was practically crackling. 

“DAD! THE HELL!” 

Lance was sitting at his desk and he jumped upon hearing his daughter’s voice. Every police officer in the place suddenly seemed to evaporate, as Laurel stomped over to her father. Tommy was handcuffed to the chair next to Lance’s desk. Malcolm was pacing silently in holding. He was glaring at Oliver and Felicity. Oliver glared right back, while the hacker ignored her father completely. 

“You arrested my husband and father-in-law at our wedding reception?” she said, voice low, hissing. 

“To be fair, I wasn’t the arresting officer. There were lots of cops at that wedding.”

“All your friends!” she screamed. Everyone winced at her pitch. She could break glass with a scream like that. “You think if you told them to stop they wouldn’t have?”

“Okay, let’s save that for later,” Felicity grumbled, pinching her brow. “Quintin, what can we do?”

“For Tommy, nothing. It’s the second time he’s been brought in for assault in less than three months. The DA wants to press charges. Plus he’s drunk. He’ll have to dry out before we let him go.”

“I’m going to kill him,” Tommy growled, lip curling as he looked at his father. 

“You aren’t helping,” Felicity snapped.

“But you can bail your father out if you like Merlyn,” Quintin added. Felicity’s eyes snapped to Malcolm. He’d stopped pacing and was staring at her long and hard. Not a word had left his lips.

“I’m good,” she said. “He can rot.” 

“I feel bathed in your love,” Malcolm said.

“Oh, I’m sorry dad, maybe I’d be more willing to spring for your bail if you hadn’t cut me off and called me a whore.” 

“He did what?” Oliver growled. He took a step towards holding, and Felicity rounded on him, pressing a hand to his chest. 

“I think enough people have been arrested over this tonight.”

“Who’s the arresting officer?” Laurel asked. Her arms crossed, in front of her chest, eyes still fixed on her father. 

“Billy Malone,” Lance admitted, “But Laurel we don’t need his witness testimony to file charges. We all saw what happened, as did every camera in the place.”

“Oh, I’m not here as a lawyer dad. I’m here as a bride and am going to give this Officer Billy a piece of my mind,” she turned on her heel, storming towards the break room. “Who the fuck arrests a groom at his own wedding reception!” 

“Did she just say she’s not here as his lawyer?” Felicity asked, her voice rising a little.

“I’ll call Jean,” Oliver said, pulling out his phone. He stepped away leaving Quintin alone with the Merlyns. 

“Who cares,” Tommy hissed. “I’m starting to think you were right, Lis. It’s better to live with kangaroos than be associated with this man.”

“You’re being ridiculous son,” Malcolm’s voice rose an octave. 

“What? Scared your legitimate child is going to spit on your legacy? The very fact you consider one of your children less than the other means you don’t deserve either of us. You don’t even deserve oxygen.”

“I tried to save her,” Malcolm growled. “Your mother convinced me that if we didn’t step in she’d wind up waiting tables at Caesars Palace, pregnant with some illegitimate spawn of a half-rate businessman. But apparently, nature outweighs nurture. And now I’m rewarded with getting to live through the humiliation of everyone knowing exactly how much of a whore my daughter is.”

Tommy lunged for the glass but was pulled up short by the handcuffs. “I’M GOING TO FUCKING KILL YOU!” 

“Ignore him, Tommy!” Felicity snapped, stepping in front of her brother and shoving him back into the chair. “He’s not worth it.” 

“She doesn’t even deny it. She knows what she is,” Malcolm growled. 

“I’m about to add verbal harassment to your charges!” Lance roared. He was red, staring at Malcolm. “One more word out of you and everything you’ve said here gets put in a public arrest report.” 

Malcolm's mouth snapped closed. Lace shook his head in shock. “You're a lucky son of a bitch and you don’t even know it. You have two amazing brilliant kids, a minor miracle they turned out so well, considering the kind of person you are, and all you can do criticize them. Tommy is right. You don’t deserve them.” 

Felicity felt her lip tremble, looking at Lance. He made eye contact with her and shot her a small smile. 

“You okay Merlyn?” he asked softly. She couldn’t speak. She could only nod. It was a relief when his ringing phone interrupted them. Oliver returned as Lance turned to answer it.

“Jean is on her way. Twenty minutes tops she said. There’s probably not a lot she can’t do given the number of witnesses, but she can make sure he just gets anger management.”

“That’s probably not the worst idea,” Felicity said, shrugging her shoulders at her brother. He glowered but didn’t disagree. Suddenly Lance stood up, pressing his phone to his ear. He turned to look at them, mouth open slightly. 

“You’re positive,” he said to the man on the other end of the phone. “Okay, thank you, Captain Singh.” He hung up slowly.

“Everything okay Quintin?” Felicity’s voice was even. She didn’t like how he was looking at them. 

“That was the police captain in Central City. He said Samantha Clayton’s lawyer came into the precinct. He was going to get Ms. Clayton’s signature on some paperwork in preparation for the hearing on Monday. They weren’t there.”

“What do you mean?” Oliver asked. Felicity’s eyes snapped to him. His face was like stone, unreadable. 

“The house was cleared out. Samantha’s gone, and she took William with her. She kidnapped him.”

Felicity grabbed Oliver’s arm, as his eyes widened. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't kill me. Stay safe and healthy!


End file.
